In response to

Several readers wrote to State Controller John Chiang over the weekend after an article in The Watchdog highlighting the Franchise Tax Board's decision to collect four years of back taxes from people who took advantage of a business gains tax break. The tax break has been ruled unconstitutional by an appeals court, and the tax board said it had no choice. But readers said the decision was simply unfair. Although the decision was made at a staff level, Chiang is chairman of the board that oversees that staff.

Here are three of the letters:

Put humanity back in government

Dear John Chiang,

I read with great interest a recent article in the San Diego Union-Tribune discussing the Franchise Tax Board’s decision to revoke a certain tax break for individuals who invested in a qualified small business and subsequently made a profit.

While the Tax Board may have valid reasons for ending such tax break, I found it appalling and unconscionable that it intends to enforce the revocation retroactively, causing many law-abiding tax payers to pay back-taxes, penalties, and interest resulting from this retroactive revocation.

I am not personally affected by this decision, nor do I personally know anyone who is, but the purpose of this letter is still written with great passion and intent. It is important for any government agency to be a model of ethics, and this decision clearly has no ethical aspect to it. How can you possibly think it is ethical to penalize someone for something that they did, when at the time they did it, they were following the IRS code as stated at the time? And I found it equally appalling that Azimi, the spokeswoman for the Tax Board to say that there is no provision in the law to waive interest. It’s time to stop hiding behind the law and put some humanity back into government. Do what you need to, to make this right. If you don’t have the power to fix this, then who does?

I look forward to hearing a response from you.

Tim Rueth

San Diego

Need to repeal

Dear John Chiang,

I can't believe the California Franchise Tax Board is seeking a RETROACTIVE tax on small business owners and investors! California is hurting for Tax Revenue but this is not the way to gain more Tax Revenue. In fact, it is a way to eliminate more tax revenue by chasing away more California businesses and taxpayers which is the basis for California Tax Revenue.

FRANCHISE TAX BOARD RETRO TAX - Need to repeal. Please do something to eliminate the proposed retroactive tax on small business owners and investors. The decision was made at the staff level and not by the three members of the franchise tax board. This is wrong to penalize tax payers who relied in good faith on what the law was five years ago. Change the rules but effective now and not retroactive. This does not encourage people or businesses to stay in California. Eliminate this retroactive tax.